I glanced at the clock on the wall. 2 a.m. was hours away, and I had a name, a motive, and a target: the 24th floor of the Gorgon, where a private party was scheduled for a handful of high‑profile investors. Barbie Rous was expected to be there— she never missed a chance to showcase her latest acquisition.
Barbie examined the card, then glanced at the briefcase. “She wants it safe, not gone. She’s playing a dangerous game.”
“I’m not a stranger,” I replied, sliding a thin, black card from my pocket. “I’m the man Renata hired.” Private.24.07.04.Barbie.Rous.And.Renata.Fox.Gon...
The rain stopped. The city exhaled.
“You’re late,” she said, her voice a blend of honey and steel. I glanced at the clock on the wall
I leaned back, feeling the weight of the city settle on my shoulders. “And why do you want it?”
She tilted her head, considering. “Alright, I’ll give you a chance. If you can bypass the lock without triggering the alarm, the chip is yours.” Barbie Rous was expected to be there— she
I was nursing a lukewarm cup of coffee when the envelope slipped through the slot. No return address, just a thick, glossy card stamped with a single pink silhouette of a high‑heeled shoe. Inside was a single line of typewritten paper, the ink smudged as though someone had been writing with a trembling hand: I stared at the words, the date already past. My mind did the quick arithmetic: three weeks. The Gorgon Building, a relic of the 1960s art‑deco era, now a glass‑capped skyscraper that housed a maze of corporate lofts, illegal back‑rooms, and the occasional celebrity hideaway. The 24th floor was the topmost—home to the “Sky Lounge”, a private club where the city’s elite came to forget the world below.
Before I could answer, a sudden crash reverberated through the room. Security guards rushed in, guns drawn, shouting orders. The party dissolved into chaos. I slipped the briefcase into the coat of a server who was exiting, blending into the storm of bodies.
We drove to Renata’s safe house: a converted warehouse on the edge of the industrial district. Inside, Renata waited, a calm presence amidst the storm of my adrenaline.